The health contract went really well, and I lost at least five pounds before May! When May happened, I kind of gave myself a rest and didn’t lose any weight that month, but I did stay about the same, and I kept doing my workouts. I am pleased to say that I feel ready to have another go at it to lose that last 10 lbs I want to lose! Woo hoo!
How is everyone doing? Do you have any weight loss or health goals you’d like to share?
The Urban Standard in Birmingham pleases every time.
Vegan coconut sweet potato soup and a veggie burger with beets, fresh pimentos, and chickpeas. HMM.
Pink Juice! 7 large carrots, three beets, 2 organic apples, ginger to taste (for me, a lot). Drink immediately with pleasure!
Now, I’ve posted about Tracy Anderson before, but I want everyone to be reminded! I am totally behind Tracy’s method for sculpting women’s bodys! She uses specific muscle exhaustion techniques to “wake up” our smaller, secondary muscle groups so that our larger muscles do not get bulky. She changes the workout routine every ten workouts so that our muscles don’t “get bored” and you CONTINUE to see results instead of your results tapering off.
Last year, I went through about half of the Metamorphosis program, which is a 90-Day DVD set. When I became a flight attendant, I dropped my good workout habits due to the major lifestyle change, but I’ve started it back up—I’m now on day 12 of Metamorphosis, which means I just started Level 2 of 9.
I have to tell you guys that after just completing the first level (and in combination with eating well) I am already seeing a huge difference in my body, once again! As soon as I find my little tape measurer (or buy a new one), I’m going to keep you guys updated with my progress (and because I want to keep updated as well).
I just couldn’t help but post about this method again, because I am seeing such impressive results from my hard work these past two weeks! Due to my knee, I am still working up to doing 30 minutes dance cardio, but I’m still dropping a little weight. I am also doubling up on the muscle video some days, which I think is helping dramatically.
Here’s some information about Tracy’s method:
So, maybe three weeks ago, I signed what I called a “Health Contract.” In a way, it was a motivational tool to encourage me to have guidelines. It’s not a diet, I don’t count calories and it doesn’t promise me I’m going to lose a certain amount of weight or tell me *exactly* what to eat, but it does ensure my addictions to salt and sugar (even if I didn’t know I had them) will disappear, and that I will be cutting out certain foods and beverages that may usually be permissable in moderation, but that really don’t help my body. Here’s a summary of some of the contract’s guidelines:
-No added salt or foods that have excessive salt.
-No “vegetable oil” (use of mostly extra virgin olive oil, sunflower oil and coconut oil)
-No animal products whatsoever
-No refined white sugar (pretty much no cane sugar)
-No white rice unless it is just one serving, and it must be the only starchy food you eat that day
-No refined white flour (at all)
-No white potatoes except what is found in one Amy’s frozen vegan burrito once a week
-Fresh juice allowed 3x weekly; 1oz of non-fresh juice allowed weekly (to season seltzer water or a smoothie with a water/tea base)
-Vega protein powder every day
-Do not generally go above 1200 calories unless at least roughly 80% of the calories are coming from fruits and vegetables with a few whole grains
-Contract also includes a list of acceptable airport foods for me to eat, too! (since I’m always there)
-No coffee at all
-No alcohol except for UP TO 2 4oz glasses of red wine weekly
I call this plan a contract, because I really did sign and date it. It has a start date and an end date, black out dates (for my vacation to Spain a couple weeks ago), and allows for two cheat days, where I am aloud to break three rules (except the vegetarian one). I am bound by my signature, my word and my intention to follow through during this two month period.
You may notice that the actualy terms are not extremely rigid. It is up to me to define how much salt in an entree is okay, for instance. It’s up to me to use my best judgment and to do right by myself. But when I’m cooking something at home, absolutely no salt is permitted! Ideally, I will have as little as possible of each of these things (the no sugar rule, for instance, means I can’t even have bottled tomato sauce or certain soups or even many wheat breads [I’ve only been eating Ezekiel bread]), but it is still up to me to define what it means.
I did this because it fits my personality—if something’s too rigid, I’ll burn out, and if something is too lax, I won’t follow through. For me, there needs to be a certain amount of structure with a creative allowance for me to be successful. There have been days when I ate foods that were completely contractually sound, but I was filling myself with too many breads or oils, and I knew I had to do better by myself! I knew I would feel better if I did what I knew was right, so the next day, I’d be back to normal. Believe me when I tell you it makes you happier and physically healthier when you eat what is best for you!
There are lots of ways to get healthy, to diet or lose weight. It’s extremely important that you find out what is right for you and be creative in how you go about doing it! Sit down with a pen and paper and think about this—think about the circumstances that make you successful, and implement those into your nutritional plan, whether that is temporary or long-term. Don’t get sucked into plans that are so rigid and exact, because YOU are different than other people, and you need to be placed in a setting where you can succeed! If you want to brainstorm ideas, don’t hesitate to contact me!
The Tracy Anderson Method certainly has a lot of big celebrity supporters – Gwenyth Paltrow, Madonna, Courtney Cox and Jessica Simpson.
Tracy Anderson was a dancer who used to struggle with her weight. She has developed a specific set of exercises with the intention of “strengthening the…
(via rachelakennedy)
(Source: becausefitandhappymatters, via myhabitsmakeme)
Is it weird that I did this? I think it probably is…but I did it. I signed a contract with myself to ensure that I do not eat things I am not supposed to. Here’s a summary of what it entails:
-No added salt
-No animal products whatsoever
-No white enriched flours or any kind (pretty much ezekial bread and brown rice only)
-No refined sugar at all (using some agave and sugar from coconut sap)
-No coffee
There’s much more, but that is just a small sample! I am actually feeling better, as my cravings for sugar and coffee are beginning to wane, and I’m getting lots more energy and enjoying my flatter stomach.
More on this contract soon, how long it lasts, what it means for my health, and more on the two “cheat days” I built into it! Ha!
XOXO
RACHEL
Last week, I completed my first two-day juice fast! I felt so great during and afterward that I can’t wait to do it again sometime for a week to ten days!
During the fast, I drank as much juice as I wanted. I juiced a huge variety of fruits and vegetables, but always over half vegetables. I juiced kale, spinach, broccoli, celery, carrots, cauliflower, romaine lettuce, apples, oranges, tomatoes, cilantro, strawberries, pineapple, lemons, and more, in all different combinations. Some of my favorite combos were, and are always…
Carrot Apple (just over half carrot…ginger is always an excellent touch!)
Apples and Greens (red delicious, spinach, broccoli, celery, kale, romaine, cauliflower)
Spiced Vegetable Juice (tomatoes, cilantro, celery, romaine lettuce, spinach and cucumber)
Carrot Pineapple Strawberry (orange juice is a nice addition, too)
I would recommend a juice fast to anyone looking to reboot their body and boost their nutrition! Since you can have as much juice as you want, you feel full without the bloated/full feeling cooked food gives you, your digestive system gets a rest, while your body obsorbs a wealth of nutrients it is not used to getting! The result? A happier, healther you.
Rachel
PS- Other Suggestions!
While I did not juice beets this week, they are an excellent source of nutrients for any juice fast! I recommend mixing beet, kale and lemon juices with a little bit of cold water and agave nectar for a dark purple, grassy lemonade! I’ve also heard lovely things about juicing watermelon.
